All About Family

This post isn't about tea [unless you count the iced tea that was drunk at dinner].  Today I'm sharing some family pictures.  My sister-in-law, Anita [my hubby's sister], lives in Alamogordo, New Mexico and hasn't been back to Michigan for a visit since 2006 - the last time I saw her.  

She returned to help her best friend, Millie, purge her home to get it ready to put on the market. She called a few days ago to say she and Millie were coming to our church today in hopes of surprising our son, Steve [the pastor], but he's in Nashville visiting his daughter, Brianna, so he missed out on the surprise.  Daughter-in-law, Sharon, and granddaughter Brooke were there though, and my daughter, Lori, was happy to see her too.

[L-R:  Millie, Anita, Sharon, Lori, Me, and Brooke]

After church we went outside for more pictures... who knows when we'll see her again??

[Jerry and Anita - he's five years older than her]

[Anita and Lori]

Me, Anita and Jerry.  Height is in my hubby's family, but not mine!  ;-)

[Lori & Dave]

After church we went out to dinner together to visit and get caught up on family news.

Steve went to Nashville to take Brianna to a James Taylor and his all-star band concert.  I'm not up-to-speed on entertainers.  Even though James Taylor is only one year younger than me, I never heard of him and had to Google him.  Steve and Bri are having a great father/daughter time together.

John, granddaughter Tiffany's husband, posted a picture of the two of them recently so I'm sharing them in this family post.  Lori is flying out to California this week to visit them and their two little girls and she's anxiously awaiting her visit.

Youngest son, Jeremy, and grandson, Landon, spent a fun weekend in New Orleans, Louisiana taking in a 49ers and Saints football game.  Jeremy said it was a good day - his team won 26 to 21.

Jeremy recently posted three short Conquerors's Way videos on Facebook explaining the ministry.  In the first video he thanked those who helped his book sell 1,000 copies. Onward and upward sharing the 'Good News' about Jesus Christ.  

Downton Abbey - Grand Finale

After Wednesday's harrowing news and the ongoing news coverage yesterday and today, it was nice to escape reality for two hours to watch the Downton Abbey Grand Finale movie at the theater this afternoon.  I bought tickets for the 4:00 o'clock showing for my hubby, daughter and myself last Saturday, and it didn't disappoint.  In fact, I think it's the best of the three Downton movies.  I highly recommend it, but be prepared for it to pull on your heartstrings.

Republic of Tea has come out with three limited teas in honor of Downton Abbey Grand Finale.  Two are herbals and one is a black tea.  Each sells for $14.50 or they can be purchased in sets.

Or how about this beautiful commemorative teacup candle for $48.00.

I will miss Downton Abbey and the people who lived upstairs and downstairs, and the glimpse they gave us into English life from 1912 thru 1930.  I loved all the tea scenes and fashions, and am so grateful I got to tour the real Downton Abbey - Highclere Castle - with my daughter in 2015.

Current Happenings

Remember the Girl Scout song? 

"Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver; the other is gold.

A circle is round; it has no end. That's how long I will be your friend"...

I have a 'golden' friend that I've known since 3rd grade.  We've kept in touch through the years even though she and her husband live in Florida.  Wednesday I received a phone call from her saying they were in MI and she was hoping we could get together.  I invited them over for an early 3:00 o'clock dinner on Thursday and we spent the afternoon and evening visiting and enjoying a wonderful time together.

Below is a picture of us in the 7th grade, followed by a picture taken Thursday.  We don't look anything like we did in the 7th grade - 65 years does alter one's appearance including glasses ;-) - but our friendship hasn't changed.

I've known Elaine's husband, Dan, since 3rd grade too.  He's changed very little except for his white hair and a few extra pounds [which have crept up on all of us].

I will weigh in at my Dr.'s office tomorrow.  I'm always eager to see what her scale reads compared to mine.   I made pasta lasagna for Elaine & Dan and my hubby, while I ate a vegetable lasagna made with zucchini, yellow summer squash and eggplant.  It was actually pretty good and I didn't feel too deprived.

Yesterday was the Autumn & Apples Tea at The Whitney and a good time was had by all.  It was originally planned to be held outdoors in the garden, but with cooler temperatures the decision was made Saturday morning to move it indoors to the third floor.  

I was delighted to see Cristy Bennett and her neighbor at the tea.  My girlfriend, Lori, and I attended many of her lovely teas in East Lansing and I blogged about them.

 

I celebrated my 7th Anniversary at The Whitney on Friday [time flies when you're having fun!], so it was especially fitting that our former General Manager, Dave Dewey, [who hired me] was at the Autumn & Apples Tea.  He's in the picture below on the right, while our current General Manager, Max Ceaser, is on the left.  Here's to seven more years!  ;-)

My granddaughter, Tiffany, [who lives in California] posted pics of my great-granddaughters Evie and Juliette on their first day of school, so I just had to share them on my blog.  Evie is in the third grade this year.

And Jules is in the first grade.  

Aren't they sweet!  They're growing up way too fast.

My hubby has been occupying himself the past few days building new cornhole boards for our son, Jeremy.  He made a set for him back in 2016, but they got left outdoors and ruined.

This set will be even nicer and will come with a protective case.  The plan is to have them done in time for Jeremy's birthday the end of the month.

How have you been keeping occupied so far this September?

Happy Labor Day!

It's become a tradition the last few years to go to the Peach Festival on Labor Day, so we left home around noon today headed for Romeo, MI.  A perfect day, weatherwise. 

The festival is always well attended but this year it was unusually crowded.

I passed on ice cream, roasted almonds, and peach handpies this year, but did get a bag of peaches.  I ate one as soon as we got home.  At only 58 calories what's not to love about them!

I don't remember vendors selling sunflowers in previous years, but more than one booth had them this year.  I couldn't resist stopping for a picture by them.  There were several jewelry vendors and I would have bought a sunflower necklace but nobody had one.

There was live country music as attendees shouted out their request songs.  Some even sang along.

I always enjoy looking around in the country store, even though I didn't purchase anything.

One last picture of the barn before leaving.

It was a fun way to spend a couple of hours, and get a little sunshine and exercise.  I hope you had a nice Labor Day.  September 1st... a new month and the ushering in of a new season even though autumn doesn't officially begin until September 22nd.

Last Day of August 2025

As I type this post, I can't help wondering where summer and the month of August went.  It's a beautiful day in southeastern Michigan to finish out the month - clear skies with sunshine and 74 degrees.  

Families are enjoying the last holiday weekend before settling into fall routines.  When I was a kid school didn't resume until the day after Labor Day, but kids in Michigan went back to school last week.  Daughter-in-law, Samantha, sent us first day of school pics for Ellie [8th grade] and Landon [10th grade].

Izzy returned to Michigan State University a couple of weeks ago to begin her Junior year. She's in an apartment with three other girls this year so no more dorm life.  Her degree will be in marketing, and she was blessed to get a marketing internship for MSU sports. Her proud Dad posted these pics on his Facebook page.

She will celebrate her 20th birthday next month and it doesn't seem possible.  I could get a lump in my throat if I thought very long about how quickly all the grandchildren have grown up!

With this being a holiday weekend, the tea count was very low at The Whitney.  Only eight reservations for Mansion Tea on Friday, so I got the day off.  I don't go in unless there's 15 or more guests.  Anything under that the servers handle.  Saturday picked up a bit with 93 guests.  

My niece was going through my brother's things last night and sent me a picture of a birthday card and note I sent him in 2018 just shortly after I started working at The Whitney, telling him all about my 'dream job'.  I was surprised he kept it all these years because he wasn't visably sentimental.  The note was a reminder that I will have my 7th work Anniversary at The Whitney on September 5th.   

The annual Autumn and Apples tea will be coming up this Saturday, so I'll assemble the favors this week - a 2.65 oz. bag of Werther's Carmel Apple candies placed inside a green plastic apple.  

Friday night we met our daughter and son-in-law at River Crab restaurant to continue celebrating her 58th birthday.  It was a lovely evening.  We ate indoors but I couldn't resist taking a picture of their outdoor dining area along the St. Clair River.

And that's a wrap on the month of August.  Tomorrow will be a relaxing, low-keyed Labor Day for us, unless we decide to go to the Romeo Peach Festival which sounds like a good way to begin September.  

I wish you and your family a safe and enjoyable Labor Day.

A Bittersweet Day

A private service for my brother was held in Georgia last Friday with his son, daughter, and her family in attendance.  Then his body was flown to Michigan Tuesday night and we had his committal service here this morning.  He's been gone from Michigan since 2017 and lost touch with his golfing and euchre buddies, so it was just my son, Steve [minister], my daughter, Lori, and my hubby and me in attendance.   He was an Air Force Veteran so a military honor began the service. Rain was forecasted, so I requested a tent at the gravesite and I'm glad I did.

Such a final sight to see, but reality for all of us.

Day is done, gone the sun,

From the lake, from the hill, from the sky.

All is well, safely rest,

God is nigh.

He passed on the same day as our mother [Aug. 17th], 11 years later.  Her favorite poem was "The Weaver" and Lori knows it by heart, so it seemed fitting to have it recited at his committal.

I read a very brief poem about brothers and laid a dozen red roses on his coffin.

Steve shared some scriptures and committal thoughts, and then we left so the cemetery workers could lay his body to rest next to his wife who passed in 2014.  He was with us for almost 84 years and now just memories of him remain with us.  Our paternal grandmother loved the short poem by British missionary C.T. Studd "Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last."  I couldn't help thinking of that poem this morning.

When we left the cemetery we went to have lunch together at a restaurant - that was the sweet part of the day.  Today is Lori's birthday, so we got to celebrate with her.  She was born at 11:11 a.m. and ironically when she got up to recite 'The Weaver' the time was 11:11 a.m.

~ Happy Birthday, Lori ~

We'll celebrate with her and her hubby again tomorrow night when we take them to River Crab restaurant in St. Clair, MI.  I remember the day she came into this world 58 years ago like it was yesterday.  I am so blessed to have three wonderful children who love Jesus and are following His plan for their lives.